Equestria Foreverby TheMajorTechieChaptersPrologueA Painful RealityNo Matter the Consequences,We Will Never Fall.Even the Weak Must Stand,For The Chain is Only as Strong as its Weakest Link.We Must Stand as OneA Retrospective of the WorldPrologue~~~ Years after the final episode of MLP aired, the Fandom has finally begun to crumble. Hasbro still hasn’t released any plans for the next generation, and thus, day by day, the brony fandom is being dismantled. Member. By. Member. And along with it, normal society has gone as well. Without the heavy influence of the ideas of tolerance, friendship, and acceptance, often promoted by the show and it’s fan works, many have begun to forget who they truly are. And yet… somewhere, someplace, there will always be a spark... A spark of hope, a lost dream, a nation forgotten. A place for the ones who have not quite lost hope, and are willing to hold onto these ideals. Equestria. The land of ponies and friendship. The final chance of humanity as we know it. The crumbling crown jewel of morale. ~~~ A cold wind blew across the land. Equestria, the once grand nation, the shining jewel of civilizations, has crumbled. Why? Simple; the fandom has fallen. Equestria has fallen. Humanity has fallen. Many years after the Elements of Harmony were set down for the last time, a tragedy struck. It wasn’t some foul beast, or even a monster from the depths of Tartarus, no… it’s unseen backers, the ones who truly believe in it, --the fandom--, had been diminishing for quite the time. It was only when Equestria began fading from the imagination, when there was finally notice of what had happened. Slowly, ever so painfully, Equestria died, bringing with it the morales that may often be taken for granted… Honesty… Kindness… Loyalty… Generosity… Laughter… And most importantly, Friendship. The remaining few, the diehards, were the last leg that withheld the integrity of Equestria. Everything they did would heavily impact the possibility of the land being lost forever, taking it’s ideals with it. They are Equestria’s, and possibly the Earth’s, final hope. Society has begun it’s lumbering demise. War has broken out, destroying many nations, and many more lives… Humans have forgotten the ways of humanity, devolving into war-torn beasts, intent on nothing more than the ultimate destruction of their rivals. The ponies-- the ever-friendly citizens of Equestria, gone. Even the Mane Six hadn’t been able to stop the conflicts, for harmony was lost; destroyed. If nothing is done, then the world is done for. Equestria Forever TheMajorTechie The Oracle Raistlin Majere NicLove FanWithoutAFace Miku-Chan Hatsune/Celestia Lunaris/SunsetAppleTwi Nightfall Gleam Shadowboltwriter Arrow Spear Author's Note Published in commemoration of the 9/11 attacks. The world is a dangerous place... A Painful RealityAuthor's Note For some reason, the GDoc importing is a bit screwed up... again. In several places the tabbed paragraphs have their indent replaced by spaces. A Painful Reality “Hey, I think I know how to save the world,” Tyrone said on the other end of the phone. Trevin sighed into the phone. This seemed to happen all the time now. Once upon many years ago, the two were just friends. They hung out together, studied together, and when college came around, they were even roommates. But now, their friendship is all that’s left. All the parks, destroyed. The schools, razed. The colleges? Those were hospitals now. “What is it this time?” Trevin finally replied, cradling his chin in a hand. Tyrone smiled as he looked back towards the folders. “We’ve gotta save Equestria first. Then I’ll tell ya.” Equestria: 4 Years after initial attacks. Twilight paced about inside the bunker, muttering to herself. Spike sat by a leaded window, warily watching for threats with a telescope. Equestria had fallen years ago. The reason? Nopony knew. It was just a single day, and in that day, Equestria fell to anarchy. The once prospering nation devolved to a ruddy land of mixed clans, all warring for power. It was as if the world they knew had simply been pulled from under their hooves. The Elements were able to hold for a couple of years, before even they cracked. Ever since the day Equestria crumbled, the mane six have been relying entirely off each other for survival. No longer were the days and nights run by Celestia and Luna, who had mysteriously disappeared many years ago. Ponyville stands as the final untouched land, carefully balancing upon the ever thinning plane of existence. “So, what are we gonna do about this now?” Twilight turned to Rainbow Dash, and shook her head slowly. “There’s not much left to do anymore. All we can do is hope for the best.” Pinkie trotted over to Twilight. She rarely bounced anymore, since the noise it made could alert enemies to their area. “Couldn’t we use the mirror portal or something?” She asked carefully as she raised a hoof in the direction of the dusty portal in the corner. “We’ve tried that already,” Twilight replied, gently setting Pinkie’s hoof down. “The other world is in just as much chaos as this one.” Rarity continued off what Twilight said. “And even Discord disappeared quite a while back. This certainly couldn’t be of his work.” Spike glanced about the bunker with a worried frown. “How long do you think this’ll last, anyways?” Twilight knocked on the wall, earning a strong, metallic, yet crystalline, ping in response. “With its construction being enclosed by a large majority of my castle’s ruins, we should be able to last as long as the farms will hold. Right, Applejack?” Applejack nodded. Though it was outside of the bunker, an underground tunnel had been dug months ago to connect the farm directly to the bunker, allowing for undetectable passage between the two. “Eyup.” Twilight turned back towards the rest, as well as the cutie map. “But there’s still another worry that I have… using the spell that the portal was enchanted with, I’ve traced any possible place we could escape to… but…” Pinkie planted her hooves on Twilight’s face, pulling her closer. “But what, Twilight?” “They… the alternate universes… they... “ Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes, and shouted, “Come on, Twi, get the point across!” “THIS UNIVERSE IS THE CONNECTING POINT BETWEEN THOSE UNIVERSES.” Dash shrugged. “So?” “What that means, is that each universe stems off of this one, and because of that, anything that happens in this universe still has a chance of happening in the alternate universes. And because of this universe’s current instability, we’re headed for a collision between universes.” Everypony, besides Pinkie, stared back towards the Princess in confusion. “I’m sorry, darling, but what do you mean by that?” Twilight facehoofed. “What I mean is that every possible way to get out of this will eventually bring us back to where we started, because at some point or another, the level of entropy will exceed a maximum point, throwing everything into disarray.” “...Aaaannnd?” Twilight threw herself onto the floor in defeat. “DON’T YOU GET IT?! WE’RE ALL DOOMED! DOOMED, I TELL YOU!” Pinkie gently patted Twilight on the back. “It’s okay, Twilight. We’ll figure out a way. Like we always do! There’s always more out there.” Twilight shakily stood back up, her eyes still watering. “You’re right, Pinkie. There’s still more out there… if only I knew where…” “Maybe a whole different universe that this was created by!” “What do you mean by that?” Pinkie hoofed the ground. “Well, I’m pretty sure that there’s the possibility that every idea, action, and thought we have will create a new universe, so… it’s possible that this universe was formed out of a simple idea from some being in an entirely different universe!” Rolling her eyes, Twilight replied, “And what are the chances of that?” Pinkie sighed. “It can range from infinitely small to infinitely large. Mainly because of the sheer number of possible universes that could host a near-infinite number of thoughts and actions. Twilight muttered something about impossible possibilities as the rest of the group just stared at Pinkie. After Twilight left the room, Rainbow Dash leaned in towards Pinkie. “I think you’re onto something there.” Trevin facepalmed. “And how are we going to save a fictional nation? And what are we saving it from, anyways?” Tyrone quickly scanned the room to make sure he wasn’t being watched as he whispered into the phone. “Us.” “And how are we saving them from ourselves? If we do anything to save them, that would just bring us back to where we are now.” Tyrone set the phone on the table, enabling the speakerphone. He then hastily strolled towards a dusty filing cabinet besides the kitchen, rummaging through various folders and paper. “Hello? Tyrone? You there, man?” Tyrone returned to the table with a worn manilla envelope, with the title, “Pony.exe” hastily scribbled onto its face. “So, you were saying something, Trevin?” “Yeah, how would we save them?” “First we’ve got to figure out a way to contact Equestria. And luckily for us, I know just how to do it.” Tyrone quickly snapped an image of the folder, and sent it over to his friend. “Ahh, Pony.exe. Good story, but… how do you think we’d be able to do anything even remotely close to that?” Tyrone paused. “I don’t know.” “Pick something else then.” Twilight sighed, setting her flank onto the worn floor. “So, you’re saying that we might just be a so-called ‘product universe’ of an entirely different, unlinked universe?” Pinkie nodded enthusiastically. “But how would we contact them? We’re in Ponyville, and all the information about portals and interdimensional travel are locked away in the Canterlot Archives.” The rest of the ponies in the room just stared at Twilight, bemused looks plastered across their collective faces. Applejack raised a brow, pointing suggestively at Pinkie with a hoof. Twilight blushed. “Oh, right. I forgot that Pinkie can usually handle stuff like that…” The team gathered about the freshly dusted mirror portal, which now had additional wires hooked up to a makeshift device attached to Pinkie. “Now then,” Twilight began as she fiddled with the control panel, “using Pinkie’s seemingly endless energy, I will set this portal to transport me to the closest ‘parent universe’ to ours. It may not have the same methods of time scaling, so I may be gone for weeks, months, or even years.” Twilight raised a hoof, tentatively poking the appendage through the newly rebooted portal. She turned back towards her friends. “Are you sure you don’t want to come with me?” She was answered with a slow, collective murmur between her friends, followed by a flurry of nods. Rainbow Dash stepped up before Twilight. “Don’t worry, Twi, we’ll watch over things here for ya while your gone.” Smiling gently, Twilight took a deep breath, and slowly stepped into the swirling portal. No Matter the Consequences, I don't know what's going on with the indent spacing. It's weird. As Twilight stepped through the portal, the first thing she noticed was the smell. It stinks like day old rotten mice in here… she thought as she glanced about the desolate wasteland. As the spots in her vision cleared, she saw something that, had Luna still been around, would have taken months to free her of the nightmares it would’ve caused to her. Heh, so this is where we came from… a land of destruction… Suddenly, Twilight’s ears perked, directing her towards a seemingly derelict house that sat at the far end of the street. Following her instincts, she began to make her slow journey towards the building. “Arrow 18 Mission Logs?” “No. Again.” Trevin sighed loudly through the phone. “Listen, Tyrone, we’ve already been through dozens of stories, but each one has some sort of flaw or another. Heck, we don’t even know if Equestria’s physics would work in this universe!” “Well, it’s a possibility…” Tyrone replied. “Says who? For all I know, Twilight Sparkle or some random pony might just appear out of some random portal and knock on your door.” Tyrone winced at the sarcasm, but stopped abruptly as he heard a knock on the door. Tyrone picked up the phone, and quickly said, “Wait a sec, someone’s at the door.” He cautiously looked out the window, and at first, saw nothing. That is, until he looked down. Grabbing the phone from the table, Tyrone quickly shouted into the phone, “Come quick, Trev, you’ve got to see this…” He slammed the phone back down on the table, and rushed to the door to allow a very dusty Twilight Sparkle to trot in. Twilight leaned in closer, her eyes glued to the aging monitor. “So...” she began slowly, “You’re saying that our universe was created unintentionally from the publishing of a children’s show?!” Tyrone gulped, nodding slowly as he awaited the inevitable tsunami of questions. “I guess that makes sense then… I mean, Equestria’s crime rates have rarely ever surpassed more than a few dozen yearly, which makes sense if it exists in a show made for young audiences…” Trevin crossed his arms. Nodding in approval of Twilight’s logic. “Yep. You’ve got it pretty much on point there.” Suddenly Twilight flung a hoof in the direction of the window. “But if our universes are so closely linked, then how did this happen?!” Tyrone set Twilight’s hoof back down, and began to explain. “Several years ago, the show that linked our universes ended for the last time, setting your universe free from the script writers. With that, everything in your universe became independent, no longer adhering to the ‘for children’ idea, and with that, it began to fall apart. Crime began to rise, morality was traded for greed. Our universe, on the other hand, took a nosedive for the worse. First of all, North Korea launched a nuclear missile in its supposed ‘self defense’ from the United states, causing a sudden surge in weapons production. Soon after, ISIS began to spread even further, aggressively destroying anything in its path. Soon, all this evolved into full-scale world war, kickstarting the third ever of the such. In this world, humanity has forgotten the one thing that’s made it human in the first place…” Twilight sat back down, intrigued by the story. “Well? Go on.” “Friendship.” Twilight raised a brow. “Really?” She replied, “Friendship? I mean, I know that it’s special and all, but even in my universe, normal animals can still express friendship. Y’know, like those times where suddenly a lion or something decides to instead play with a gazelle?” Trevin nodded. “Y’know, Tyrone,” he began, “she’s got a point. What she said actually happened many years back, before those two animals went extinct.” Tyrone’s shoulders slumped. “Yeah, I guess you’re right. But still, most people here just seem to have forgotten how to be normal, civilized beings…” Twilight took a few seconds to allow her mind to process everything. “So basically, once our universe began to crumble, it took yours with it, causing an endless loop of feedback between the two universes. Right?” Trevin corrected her. “Actually, it’s the other way around. The reason why the show was cancelled was because its owner, Hasbro, was taken down by several acts of terror that targeted the ‘non-believer’s propaganda of the west’.” Tyrone continued off what his friend had said moments earlier. “Yes, and after that, the fandom that supported the shows, including us, began to try our best to preserve the show and its ideals, but ultimately failed once the third war broke out.” Twilight flopped onto the floor in defeat. From the floor, she said, “So basically, no matter what the consequences are, we’ll pretty much be doomed anyways?” Tyrone tightened his hands into a fist, unsatisfied with the idea of defeat. “No, Twilight, what you mean to say is that ‘No matter the consequences, we will never fall!’ You got it?!” Twilight sighed. “I guess so. So how are we gonna save our universes?” Trevin pounded his chest, pointing over his heart. “Here.” “With love? I hate to rain on your parade man, but most people have practically forgotten what that word means.” Trevin shrugged in response. “It’s worth a try.” Author's Note Can you guess who wrote the stories mentioned in this chapter??? We Will Never Fall.The trio left the house at sunrise. Tyrone checked the solar collectors one last time to ensure that when they come back, they’d at least have warm water. It wasn’t too odd now to see various odds and ends attached to rooftops and walls these days, since the remaining civilians had to live of what they had. For the past two years, Trevin and Tyrone would rotate houses, allowing resources at one house to recharge while they lived off the other house’s available resources. Trevin had been off at his own house earlier to tend the greenhouse, when he had been called by Tyrone. Originally, upon hearing what his friend had to say, Trevin thought that Tyrone had finally snapped from the pressures of warfare. But… once he saw Twilight for himself, it became much harder for him to doubt his friend again. And yet, doubt he did. “Are you sure that it’s safe to be out in the open right now?” Trevin asked, blinking in the scorching sunlight of the day. Tyrone continued walking, Twilight by his side. “Wait up!” Trevin scampered up besides Tyrone, his thick glasses already coated with dust from the endless stretches of war-torn landscape. Continuing from what he said earlier, Trevin said, “I mean, with how we’re just blatantly presenting ourselves out in the open, we could make easy targets for whatever might be watching.” Tyrone continued on without a word, with only Twilight glancing back for a quick second. “C’mon, Twilight, don’t you understand? Tyrone? We need to stay protected!” Tyrone froze. “Protection is only an illusion,” he muttered under his breath, “if we’re to stay protected, I’d recommend that you stick by my side.” Nodding weakly, Trevin did as he was told. The musty scent of books hit Twilight with a strong sense of familiarity. A library! She thought, trotting happily beside her escorts. Tyrone’s eyes darted about, checking for any signs of being watched. Once he confirmed that the area was secure, he knocked on the side of an old bookshelf. Two short knocks, four seconds pause, followed by sixteen quick raps with his fingertips. The bookshelf shifted, its shelves creaking under the strain of the sudden movement, threatening to lose its contents at any second. Once the shelf had moved aside, Tyrone stepped in, followed by Trevin and Twilight, whose jaws were agape in astonishment. “Tyrone… you… you took us… here?” Trevin asked, eyeing the rows upon rows of empty shelves. Tyrone nodded. “Yes.” he replied, “Before the war began, I regularly came into this area of the library. With how often I volunteered here, I was allowed full access to pretty much any part of the building, so I figured that this storage room would serve us nicely.” Treving rolled his eyes. “Yeah, I know that.” he said, his eyes still darting about in astonishment that the room still existed. “I mean, I’ve known you since third grade. Of course this place would serve us nicely… if we wanted a quiet place to study.” Twilight wiped her hoof across the dusty shelves. “It doesn’t seem like anyone’s been here for ages.” she said, blowing the dust off her hoof. Tyrone chuckled lightly. “You can blame the war for that.” Trevin moved in between the two. “Seriously though,” he began, “what are we here for?” Tyrone smirked. “Remember that knock code I used to get in here?” He asked, raising an eyebrow. “Yeah?” “With the power out, you’d need a person to open that door. Someone who’d be crazy enough to live in a freakin’ library, of all things.” Trevin made a face, followed by Twilight with a scowl of her own. “Kevin?” He asked flatly, thinking back to the times when the burly-haired teen sat in the corner for hours with his face in manga novels. He never really like the boy, considering how the two of them were often confused for one another in class. Tyrone nodded. “In fact, besides coordinating with you, the only other use my phone’s been getting is to set this place up in case something like this happened.” “Something like what?” Trevin asked. Tyrone turned a corner, revealing a fully-fledged greenhouse, complete with automatic watering, temperature control, and solar lighting. Beaming with pride, Tyrone finally answered. “Well, I convinced Kevin here to help me build a bunker in this old room. It’s not very secure, but in terms of supplies, it’ll gonna last us at least a year.” Tyrone said. Kevin nodded as he emerged from the greenhouse, sweat beading on his forehead. “He’s right,” Kevin replied as he leaned on a creaky shelf. “He’ll call me every once in a while and tell me what to set up here while he’s gone. In a few weeks, this place should be ready to take in survivors like you.” He tapped on the plexiglass panels that made the low-hanging roof of the greenhouse. “But for now, the greenhouse isn’t entirely ready yet. I still have to punch a hole through the library’s roof to let some light in.” Tyrone glanced towards Kevin in agreement. “Yeah, it’s pretty hard to grow things when the light’s only coming from side windows.” Trevin raised a brow. “Well, why didn’t you tell me?” He asked, shooting an accusing glare at his rival. Tyrone shrugged. “We figured that if you helped out, it would probably be with the more technical things. Y’know? Like electrical stuff.” Sounds reasonable… Trevin thought as he began exploring the area. Quickly returning after pacing through the cobweb-coated shelves, Trevin sat down on a small stool. “For starters,” he began, “I could probably salvage some solar panels from some of the abandoned houses along the street… and then set up an alternator and a transformer for using everyday appliances… and--” Trevin was cut off by Tyrone, who held up a hand, signaling for him to stop his rambling. “We get it, Trevin. You do electric stuff.” Twilight piped up from behind a large textbook she had picked up earlier in the library. “Or I can just scavenge some things laying around and build some makeshift gadgets.” The group continued their chatter, not noticing the door as it slowly creaked open, allowing for a green-hooded figure to slip inside. Even the Weak Must Stand,~~~ Entry 678, Scout Day 11, Elise Ciara It’s been so long since I’ve seen people… actual, living people. And here I am, standing in front of a library, of all the places I’d find people. You’d think that I’d have a better chance scouting out camps and stuff, but… I’m just gonna leave it at “No-one’s there anymore”. I braced my body against the crusty door, wincing from the pain that shot up my leg. I busted up my knee earlier while I was scouting along the roads. Finally, I got the heavy door to open wide enough for me to slip in. At first, the library seemed clearly abandoned, but out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that there was an odd shelf that just kinda… stuck out from the wall. Upon closer inspection, I found that it was a passageway, and so naturally, I peeked inside. To my surprise, I saw people. And not only that, but there was a full-sized greenhouse in the back room, and… Twilight Sparkle? Twilight’s ears perked at the sound of footsteps. “Guys,” she whispered, “Someone’s here.” Tyrone whirled around, spotting the figure in the direction Twilight pointed her hoof. Instinctively, he picked a large, heavy book from the ground. A perfect size to throw at one’s head. “Be careful,” Kevin warned, stepping aside for Tyrone to allow his passage. Tyrone stumbled about in the darkened section of the library, tripping over piles of dusty books, and occasionally yelping in pain from stubbing his toe. Finally, he reached the area the figure had slinked off into. “Come out,” he said firmly, “SHOW YOURSELF!” A low groan echoed through the section, followed by a girl who had duct-taped several books together as a splint. She wore a green hoodie, and her hair was heavily matted with all sorts of things. She could barely walk, and was supporting herself against the shelves. Tyrone dropped the book, which landed with a soft ‘thud’ against the carpeted floor. “I-I’m sorry, miss…” he stammered, “I didn’t expect someone like you to be snooping around the library. I mean, typically, the only other people you’d see these days are raiders…” Elise chuckled, and suddenly winced again as she knocked her bad knee against the book. “It’s fine,” she replied as she rubbed her knee, “I’ve had to deal with my own share of raiders for a while now.” Tyrone raised an eyebrow, surprised at the girl’s remark. “Well, then why are you here?” he asked. The girl paused for a moment to think. “My family and I were on a camping trip when the war began, so naturally, we stayed hidden in the forest. That is, until the ‘Scorched Earth’ siege was launched. I lost my entire family to the fires, so I became a lone wolf. Y’know? Surviving on my own, living off whatever I find…” Tyrone patted her on the back. And she didn’t even shed a tear about it, either. He thought as he slid his arms under her. “You don’t have to live like that anymore,” he said as he lifted her up. Tyrone returned to the rest of the group with the bandaged girl, much to the surprise of everyone else. Trevin pointed towards Elise as he glanced towards Twilight. “Looks like we’ve found your intruder, Twi.” Twilight’s initial worry of an attack soon gave way, her face relaxing as she let out her tension. “Well, that’s good.” She said, glancing towards Elise. Kevin stared at Elise for several seconds, before finally saying, “You can’t stay.” “W-what?!” Screamed Elise, regretting her outburst immediately after with a wincing scowl. “I’ve been walking. With a bad leg.” She heaved her wounded leg onto the table to prove her point. “And on top of that, I haven’t seen anything even remotely similar to civilization for months.” Kevin backed up in surprise. “Woah, lady. I didn’t mean that you couldn’t stay just because you’re here, I meant to say that the greenhouse won’t be able to support so many people.” He stepped back towards Elise. “What I mean is, you’ll have to work your stay. We can’t afford to just mindlessly donate to whoever the hell we want, okay?” Elise shrugged. “I’m fine with that.” She said casually, eyeing Kevin intensely. She dropped her focus on Kevin, and turned to Twilight. “One more thing, why is a fuckin’ pony here?!” Twilight chuckled nervously. “It’s kind of a long story, actually…” she replied, setting her book down. “You see, Equestria’s in just a bad of a state as this world, possibly even worse as far as I know. So I left my friends, what’s left of my family, and Equestria as a whole to find what I can only say would be the last chance for society.” Kevin leaned in towards Trevin. “Woah, that’s deep.” he whispered, earning a quick smack to the face. “Shut up, Kevin.” Kevin leaned back. “But still... deep.” Another smack. Tyrone rolled his eyes at the encounter. “Listen. All we need are some helpers. Alright? Some nice people who are willing to do some work, fix this place up some more. We’re not gonna be saving the world on an empty stomach, y’know?” Kevin shut up, and nodded vigorously. “Now then. Elise here’s injured too, so we’ll need to treat her first. She wouldn’t be very helpful just sitting there.” Trevin silently rushed towards the office for a first aid kit, while Elise began mapping out the area on a notebook. For The Chain is Only as Strong as its Weakest Link.“Ow!” “Calm down, Elise. It’s just some alcohol wipes.” Elise silently glared at Trevin as she rubbed her stinging knee. “Hey, like I said, it’s gonna sting, but it’s for the better.” She winced again as Trevin poured a cold water bottle over the wound to rinse off any remaining dirt. He then dug through the first-aid box, and pulled out a roll of gauze. A few brief minutes later, Elise was back up again with a freshly bandaged leg, along with a proper splint made from broken shelf pieces. Quickly glancing about before sitting down, she pulled out her journal once more, and began writing. Entry 679, Scout Day 11, Elise Ciara So, apparently, this library’s been converted into a bunker of sorts. It’s pretty, but it definitely wouldn’t hold up against a raid. I’ve already drawn out some things on the back of the page that should help in terms of security. My knee’s also stinging a lot less now, thanks to Trev and whatever the hell that was that he smothered my knee with… At least it doesn’t look so gross anymore. He also went ahead and wrapped it up in some gauze, but I can still see some blood seeping through. I’m also pretty hungry. If I remember correctly, the buff guy said that the greenhouse wasn’t complete yet. I can see what he means, since the greenhouse’s still covered by the library’s ceiling. I’ll probably go back out later to scavenge some dandelions from the remaining green patches in the area. They’ll make a nice salad or something. Elise’s stomach did the writing for the last part. How many days had it been since she last ate? Two? Three? Ever since the last of the rations back at camp were cleared, she had been surviving off whatever she could scavenge from her surroundings. Small berries, flowers, she even ate grass during the hardest times. “Lemme guess. Hungry?” Elise glanced upwards, her gaze meeting Trevin’s. “Yeah, I guess so. Should we go out and scavenge or something?” Trevin shook his head. “No,” he replied, “I’ve got a personal greenhouse. Here, take this.” He pulled a small paper-wrapped package from his backpack, and tossed it down to Elise. She slowly unwrapped it, revealing a plastic baggie filled with dried fruit. Elise looked back up to Trevin, a nervous smile spreading across her face. “You-you’re giving me this? I… I thought that I had to work for my rations…” Trevin smiled gently. “It’s just a sort of ‘welcome to the club’ gift.” he replied, “I gave Twilight there a few apples earlier while Tyrone was finding you.” Elise’s eyebrows furrowed in worry. “But--” “But food’s precious?” Trevin continued, finishing Elise’s sentence. “Yeah.” Trevin shrugged. “So what? I’ve got a decent surplus back at my place anyways. Just try not to eat it all too quickly.” “Why?” she asked. Tyrone replied, “Even though I have a surplus, it’s not that much of a surplus. Don’t forget, we’re still rationing.” Elise nodded, and slipped a dried pear slice from the bag into her mouth. “Is it okay?” Trevin asked, watching Elise as she chewed the fruit. She shrugged. “Eh, I’ve tasted better, but it sure beats dandelion salad.” Trevin’s eyes widened. He barfed a little in his mouth, too. Noticing his face turning green, Elise giggled. “It’s actually not all that bad. You should try it sometime.” Trevin held up a finger, and began running towards the restrooms. Meanwhile, Elise picked herself back up from the floor, and began making her way back towards the rest of the group, who were busy discussing what to grow in the greenhouse. When she arrived, Twilight turned to face her. “I overheard you back there talking to Trevin.” Elise began to blush. “Look, I can explai--” “I’ve had dandelion salad before, too! And I know what you mean. Bitter, but at the same time, nice and crunchy, too!” The two glanced over towards Tyrone and Kevin, who had frozen in their places. Tyrone broke the silence. “Wait, wait… so you’re saying that you’ve both eaten dandelions… in a salad.” Elise shrugged. “It’s better than chewing sticks, okay?” Twilight continued from where Elise ended. “And besides, it’s tangy, too! You should try it sometime!” Kevin cocked his head. “Um… I’m just gonna…” He stood up, and began backing away from the girl and the pony. “...leave you two alone for now…” He turned, and made a mad dash to the opposite side of the library, where he proceeded to immediately stick his face into the nearest cookbook he could find. Author's Note Here's the sixth chapter. After the eleventh chapter, it'll all come to an end... and quite literally a new beginning. We Must Stand as OneWhile our intrepid humans, backed by Twilight are busy trying to save the world, the mane 5 plus spike are fighting for their lives back in Equestria. Somehow, intruders (Midnight Talons) have breached through part of the wall and are pouring through the breach and all ponies must fight to survive, I think maybe we can afford to kill off a couple of background characters, (not gory or anything) (need to figure how the breach occured.) As the chapter concludes, things fade away and one of the mane 5’s last thought is of Twilight abandoning them. (Like different time zones, an hour in Earth is like a day in Equestria, so Twilight’s been gone for a few days and the others have begun losing hope.) Partially. Sombra's taken a large portion of it. Sombra's holding Shining Armor for ransom. Sombra, who's being backed by a cult. Cadence is in a separate base in the crystal empire, but Celestia and Luna are missing. Applebloom made it, Derpy, and Lyra. Bon Bon, AKA Secret Agent Sweetie Drops, is MIA. ~~~ “Something’s coming.” Spike lowered his telescope, and turned to the rest of the group. “Applejack, you guard the main entrance. If anything comes through, I want you to buck them as hard as you can. Even if it means killing them.” The Earth Pony nodded solemnly, and headed her way towards the assigned post. “Fluttershy, how’s that army coming?” Fluttershy saluted timidly, her eyes darting between her animal friends. They’ve never had any experience in fighting, except for Angel, really. She thought. “Um… they’re fine… I guess…” “Great,” nodded Spike, “Rarity?” Pinkie pointed a hoof towards the back entrance. “She already guarding the back. All her stuff’s there, remember?” Spike raised an eyebrow, but didn’t question anything. “Uh… Pinkie, you just guard whatever. You’re pretty much everywhere at once, anyways.” Pinkie bounced off into the ceiling, defying all logic and laws of physics, as usual. What did I just see? Spike thought as he shook his head. “Dash, you guard the surface. Alert me if anything shows up.” Rainbow Dash quickly saluted, and fled out the door. Spike held the telescope back to his eye, closely following Rainbow Dash as she began scouting outside. As he looked outside, he saw an unfortunately familiar flag, adorned with a silver talon in front of a white moon. “Midnight Talons…” He thought, “What are they doing here? They mostly stay where the old Griffon Empire was.” He thought back to the first time he had heard of them. Back then, they had just captured the Capital of the Griffon empire, and had declared it to be Midnight Talon territory. But now… it seemed as if they were intent on owning all of Equestria. He gazed out the window again, watching Dash hover about the perimeter, steely eyes scanning the skies. Rarity hurriedly paced back and forth by the back entrance. Though she hardly cared anymore about her fashion--there was rarely anybody left to show off to--she still felt a bit more normal to be around her old items. She shrieked in surprise as a large, steel-tipped spear bashed its way through the hard crystal walls, easily knocking a hole the size of her hoof. “Burn the place down,” she heard through the walls, “storm the place! LEAVE NO SURVIVORS.” She chuckled to herself, knowing that a large majority of crystals, including the type the Castle was composed of, were typically flame-resistant. If it were anything besides, then the castle would likely have been destroyed years ago by one of Twilight’s ‘experiments’. She heard one of the Talons give a frustrated groan, continuing to punch through the wall with a spear. As strong as they are, they can be quite dull at times. She thought, charging her horn. A quick flame spell later, and the Midnight Talons were dispersed. Typical… she thought, grinning proudly to herself, birds afraid of the fire. Then she heard a much louder voice outside. One that barked, “RELEASE THE DIAMOND DOGS!” Oh dear. She took a peek out the door, and saw some diamond dog mercenaries in a row outside the door beginning to charge. She quickly closed the door, and felt a heavy thud a few seconds later. A few pained groans came from the other side, and that loud voice once again yelled, “CHARGE, I SAY! DO YOU WANT YOUR PAY OR NOT?!” “Y-yes, sir!” A much weaker voice stammered, the spear withdrawing from the wall. From the hole in the wall, Rarity shot a blinding light spell, stunning the Talons for a few precious moments. Immediately after, she followed through with several short-term illusions to throw said Talons off. Outside, she could hear confused mutters, and the clashing of friendly fire as Talons turned on each other, thanks to the illusion spell that she had wrapped about the nearest to her. Thanks, Trixie, she thought as she fired another volley of illusions. This time, they were all focused on the commander of their troop. Yet another blinding flash later, and all enemy troops had found themselves charging their own commander. Huh. they really are featherbrains... Spike patted Rarity on the back, startling the mare. “Good work, but you’ll be needed up front now.” he said through a worried smile. Rainbow Dash returned, panting heavily. “The… there’s more backup troops flanking our east side!” She yelled. Spike nodded, and turned to Applejack and Fluttershy, the latter shrinking back in fear. He pointed a claw towards the area Dash had mentioned. “We all must do our parts. It’s your turn now.” Applejack tightened her helmet, and galloped out the door without a word, her steel and applewood rifle ready to fire. The pegasus followed after, flanked on each side by her furry army. Spike watched sadly as his former friends, now his troops, left the room, opening the possibility of never coming back. A Retrospective of the WorldTyrone shivered as he drew his raggedy blanket about his skinny frame, trying to ignore the gnawing hunger that he felt. The electricity had come on for the first time in weeks, and he was taking advantage of the rare occasion, watching the news for updates on the war. The news was on. (In fact, it was the only program available, for all others were now forbidden by the government.) Nowadays, it rarely, if ever, held good news. War in one country, famine and sickness in another. It seemed like the society of Earth was slowly declining towards its unfortunate demise, and yet very few seemed to take notice, though if they did, they didn’t seem to care, too busy caught in the petty, useless battles between mankind. Whatever happened to peace and tolerance? He sadly wondered to himself, as he watched the depressing imagery. There was a time when everyone was friends... and harmony reigned above all. ...And now, in this world of eight billion people, there was no friendship. No love, no harmony. Nothing, nothing at all. Only war. War and sickness. In fact, the last time people had united in friendship against hate and prejudice had been when the last generation of that supposed child’s show aired. What was it called? Oh yes; My Little Pony, Friendship is Magic. In its heyday, the show had 7 seasons, four movies and tons of fan-made stories, art and music. People all around the world, from young girls to elderly men had bonded together, forming a beautiful fandom based upon their love for this seemingly unforgettable show. Despite originally being aimed at children, the show rapidly gained ground, because of its message for friendship, love and tolerance, and the six Elements of Harmony; Laughter, Kindness, Loyalty, Honesty, Generosity. And Magic, the element to unite all elements in friendship. The show, with its message of togetherness had risen during a time where the global phenomenon known as the internet had begun its own corruption and sealing Earth’s doom. At first, it was just a small handful of threats and trolls, which then escalated to terrorism, and in turn became a wave of worldwide hate crimes. The show, and its fandom, had suddenly found themselves as one of the major supporting beams of society; the keepers of whatever shreds of humanity there was left on the planet, the basic humanity, men had long since forgotten. Hasbro had yet to reveal the next generation due to unforeseen consequences, and with this, the fandom began to churn out a near-endless line of works, and at one point even an unofficial eighth season. But all to no avail. The fandom began to lose its charm not too long after, and became stagnant. First, the superficial bronies and pegasisters, the ones who said they liked the show, but weren’t as deeply committed to the ideals and beliefs as the rest. They were the first to fall, followed by the regular bronies and Pegasisters, who reluctantly gave up on the show, their various fan site accounts dead and buried, their art forgotten and their music unheard. As one of the biggest influences over society, the fandom had been mainly balancing out evil, and occasionally changing the minds of a large group here and there. Now with the fandom fallen, there was now nothing to combat the hate and prejudice of the common man, who have since turned on each other, creating wars and sickness through horrifying methods. Many peacekeeping organizations were destroyed in the first few days of the Third World War. Even large organizations such as Anonymous fell to the destruction of society, by the means of internal conflict. Even Hasbro, the original publisher of the series-- thus the founder of the fandom-- couldn’t stand to the chaos. Just a couple of years afterwards, its headquarters were utterly devastated by a series of various attacks. However, there still exists a fragment, however small compared to the much larger, and once-proud Brony fandom. The die-hards, who despite everything, had never given up on the show, and continued to defiantly publish their stories and art, defying the inevitable doom that glared in their faces. The once great gem of My Little Pony; Equestria now lies in ruins, lost and forgotten by all but those loyal to the end, who continue to this day in attempt to prop up the sad facade of the show. The loss of the fandom has greatly weakened Equestria, with only the true fans keeping the structure sound. They have to be careful, lest any action they make may forever change the land itself. Eventually, the news became too upsetting, so Tyrone turned it off, plunging the damp room into stygian darkness. He glanced at his computer, fighting off the waves of memories it held for him. In his time, he had been one of the loudest voices and biggest supporters for the fandom, but like many, he had eventually lost hope and abandoned the fandom to die its slow and miserable death. As he stood before it, unbidden images sprang to his mind. The ponies, brightly coloured and as happy as ever, the beautiful capitol, Canterlot; a gem among gems, the Crystal Palace, stunning in its radiant glow. He had experienced many happy occasions, as well as sad with the fandom he had once called his true family. He missed the fandom, missed the show, missed the Old Earth. It had been too long now. What was it? Two? Three years ago? His gaze met the dusty calendar hanging on the wall. Five years. Five too many… he thought, glancing at the war-torn landscape through his cracked window. He looked back at his prized works, all neatly arranged across multiple folders on his desk. No, He realized, hope springing to his heart. It doesn’t have to end here. If no-one will do anything to save this world, I will. He glanced back towards his computer. He would need help... He couldn’t do this on his own. Hopefully, the network will cooperate… he thought as he picked up an old cellphone. A few quick dial tones later, Tyrone found himself connected to an old friend. “Hey, I think I know how to save the world.”
Prologue~~~ Years after the final episode of MLP aired, the Fandom has finally begun to crumble. Hasbro still hasn’t released any plans for the next generation, and thus, day by day, the brony fandom is being dismantled. Member. By. Member. And along with it, normal society has gone as well. Without the heavy influence of the ideas of tolerance, friendship, and acceptance, often promoted by the show and it’s fan works, many have begun to forget who they truly are. And yet… somewhere, someplace, there will always be a spark... A spark of hope, a lost dream, a nation forgotten. A place for the ones who have not quite lost hope, and are willing to hold onto these ideals. Equestria. The land of ponies and friendship. The final chance of humanity as we know it. The crumbling crown jewel of morale. ~~~ A cold wind blew across the land. Equestria, the once grand nation, the shining jewel of civilizations, has crumbled. Why? Simple; the fandom has fallen. Equestria has fallen. Humanity has fallen. Many years after the Elements of Harmony were set down for the last time, a tragedy struck. It wasn’t some foul beast, or even a monster from the depths of Tartarus, no… it’s unseen backers, the ones who truly believe in it, --the fandom--, had been diminishing for quite the time. It was only when Equestria began fading from the imagination, when there was finally notice of what had happened. Slowly, ever so painfully, Equestria died, bringing with it the morales that may often be taken for granted… Honesty… Kindness… Loyalty… Generosity… Laughter… And most importantly, Friendship. The remaining few, the diehards, were the last leg that withheld the integrity of Equestria. Everything they did would heavily impact the possibility of the land being lost forever, taking it’s ideals with it. They are Equestria’s, and possibly the Earth’s, final hope. Society has begun it’s lumbering demise. War has broken out, destroying many nations, and many more lives… Humans have forgotten the ways of humanity, devolving into war-torn beasts, intent on nothing more than the ultimate destruction of their rivals. The ponies-- the ever-friendly citizens of Equestria, gone. Even the Mane Six hadn’t been able to stop the conflicts, for harmony was lost; destroyed. If nothing is done, then the world is done for. Equestria Forever TheMajorTechie The Oracle Raistlin Majere NicLove FanWithoutAFace Miku-Chan Hatsune/Celestia Lunaris/SunsetAppleTwi Nightfall Gleam Shadowboltwriter Arrow Spear Author's Note Published in commemoration of the 9/11 attacks. The world is a dangerous place...
A Painful RealityAuthor's Note For some reason, the GDoc importing is a bit screwed up... again. In several places the tabbed paragraphs have their indent replaced by spaces. A Painful Reality “Hey, I think I know how to save the world,” Tyrone said on the other end of the phone. Trevin sighed into the phone. This seemed to happen all the time now. Once upon many years ago, the two were just friends. They hung out together, studied together, and when college came around, they were even roommates. But now, their friendship is all that’s left. All the parks, destroyed. The schools, razed. The colleges? Those were hospitals now. “What is it this time?” Trevin finally replied, cradling his chin in a hand. Tyrone smiled as he looked back towards the folders. “We’ve gotta save Equestria first. Then I’ll tell ya.” Equestria: 4 Years after initial attacks. Twilight paced about inside the bunker, muttering to herself. Spike sat by a leaded window, warily watching for threats with a telescope. Equestria had fallen years ago. The reason? Nopony knew. It was just a single day, and in that day, Equestria fell to anarchy. The once prospering nation devolved to a ruddy land of mixed clans, all warring for power. It was as if the world they knew had simply been pulled from under their hooves. The Elements were able to hold for a couple of years, before even they cracked. Ever since the day Equestria crumbled, the mane six have been relying entirely off each other for survival. No longer were the days and nights run by Celestia and Luna, who had mysteriously disappeared many years ago. Ponyville stands as the final untouched land, carefully balancing upon the ever thinning plane of existence. “So, what are we gonna do about this now?” Twilight turned to Rainbow Dash, and shook her head slowly. “There’s not much left to do anymore. All we can do is hope for the best.” Pinkie trotted over to Twilight. She rarely bounced anymore, since the noise it made could alert enemies to their area. “Couldn’t we use the mirror portal or something?” She asked carefully as she raised a hoof in the direction of the dusty portal in the corner. “We’ve tried that already,” Twilight replied, gently setting Pinkie’s hoof down. “The other world is in just as much chaos as this one.” Rarity continued off what Twilight said. “And even Discord disappeared quite a while back. This certainly couldn’t be of his work.” Spike glanced about the bunker with a worried frown. “How long do you think this’ll last, anyways?” Twilight knocked on the wall, earning a strong, metallic, yet crystalline, ping in response. “With its construction being enclosed by a large majority of my castle’s ruins, we should be able to last as long as the farms will hold. Right, Applejack?” Applejack nodded. Though it was outside of the bunker, an underground tunnel had been dug months ago to connect the farm directly to the bunker, allowing for undetectable passage between the two. “Eyup.” Twilight turned back towards the rest, as well as the cutie map. “But there’s still another worry that I have… using the spell that the portal was enchanted with, I’ve traced any possible place we could escape to… but…” Pinkie planted her hooves on Twilight’s face, pulling her closer. “But what, Twilight?” “They… the alternate universes… they... “ Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes, and shouted, “Come on, Twi, get the point across!” “THIS UNIVERSE IS THE CONNECTING POINT BETWEEN THOSE UNIVERSES.” Dash shrugged. “So?” “What that means, is that each universe stems off of this one, and because of that, anything that happens in this universe still has a chance of happening in the alternate universes. And because of this universe’s current instability, we’re headed for a collision between universes.” Everypony, besides Pinkie, stared back towards the Princess in confusion. “I’m sorry, darling, but what do you mean by that?” Twilight facehoofed. “What I mean is that every possible way to get out of this will eventually bring us back to where we started, because at some point or another, the level of entropy will exceed a maximum point, throwing everything into disarray.” “...Aaaannnd?” Twilight threw herself onto the floor in defeat. “DON’T YOU GET IT?! WE’RE ALL DOOMED! DOOMED, I TELL YOU!” Pinkie gently patted Twilight on the back. “It’s okay, Twilight. We’ll figure out a way. Like we always do! There’s always more out there.” Twilight shakily stood back up, her eyes still watering. “You’re right, Pinkie. There’s still more out there… if only I knew where…” “Maybe a whole different universe that this was created by!” “What do you mean by that?” Pinkie hoofed the ground. “Well, I’m pretty sure that there’s the possibility that every idea, action, and thought we have will create a new universe, so… it’s possible that this universe was formed out of a simple idea from some being in an entirely different universe!” Rolling her eyes, Twilight replied, “And what are the chances of that?” Pinkie sighed. “It can range from infinitely small to infinitely large. Mainly because of the sheer number of possible universes that could host a near-infinite number of thoughts and actions. Twilight muttered something about impossible possibilities as the rest of the group just stared at Pinkie. After Twilight left the room, Rainbow Dash leaned in towards Pinkie. “I think you’re onto something there.” Trevin facepalmed. “And how are we going to save a fictional nation? And what are we saving it from, anyways?” Tyrone quickly scanned the room to make sure he wasn’t being watched as he whispered into the phone. “Us.” “And how are we saving them from ourselves? If we do anything to save them, that would just bring us back to where we are now.” Tyrone set the phone on the table, enabling the speakerphone. He then hastily strolled towards a dusty filing cabinet besides the kitchen, rummaging through various folders and paper. “Hello? Tyrone? You there, man?” Tyrone returned to the table with a worn manilla envelope, with the title, “Pony.exe” hastily scribbled onto its face. “So, you were saying something, Trevin?” “Yeah, how would we save them?” “First we’ve got to figure out a way to contact Equestria. And luckily for us, I know just how to do it.” Tyrone quickly snapped an image of the folder, and sent it over to his friend. “Ahh, Pony.exe. Good story, but… how do you think we’d be able to do anything even remotely close to that?” Tyrone paused. “I don’t know.” “Pick something else then.” Twilight sighed, setting her flank onto the worn floor. “So, you’re saying that we might just be a so-called ‘product universe’ of an entirely different, unlinked universe?” Pinkie nodded enthusiastically. “But how would we contact them? We’re in Ponyville, and all the information about portals and interdimensional travel are locked away in the Canterlot Archives.” The rest of the ponies in the room just stared at Twilight, bemused looks plastered across their collective faces. Applejack raised a brow, pointing suggestively at Pinkie with a hoof. Twilight blushed. “Oh, right. I forgot that Pinkie can usually handle stuff like that…” The team gathered about the freshly dusted mirror portal, which now had additional wires hooked up to a makeshift device attached to Pinkie. “Now then,” Twilight began as she fiddled with the control panel, “using Pinkie’s seemingly endless energy, I will set this portal to transport me to the closest ‘parent universe’ to ours. It may not have the same methods of time scaling, so I may be gone for weeks, months, or even years.” Twilight raised a hoof, tentatively poking the appendage through the newly rebooted portal. She turned back towards her friends. “Are you sure you don’t want to come with me?” She was answered with a slow, collective murmur between her friends, followed by a flurry of nods. Rainbow Dash stepped up before Twilight. “Don’t worry, Twi, we’ll watch over things here for ya while your gone.” Smiling gently, Twilight took a deep breath, and slowly stepped into the swirling portal.
No Matter the Consequences, I don't know what's going on with the indent spacing. It's weird. As Twilight stepped through the portal, the first thing she noticed was the smell. It stinks like day old rotten mice in here… she thought as she glanced about the desolate wasteland. As the spots in her vision cleared, she saw something that, had Luna still been around, would have taken months to free her of the nightmares it would’ve caused to her. Heh, so this is where we came from… a land of destruction… Suddenly, Twilight’s ears perked, directing her towards a seemingly derelict house that sat at the far end of the street. Following her instincts, she began to make her slow journey towards the building. “Arrow 18 Mission Logs?” “No. Again.” Trevin sighed loudly through the phone. “Listen, Tyrone, we’ve already been through dozens of stories, but each one has some sort of flaw or another. Heck, we don’t even know if Equestria’s physics would work in this universe!” “Well, it’s a possibility…” Tyrone replied. “Says who? For all I know, Twilight Sparkle or some random pony might just appear out of some random portal and knock on your door.” Tyrone winced at the sarcasm, but stopped abruptly as he heard a knock on the door. Tyrone picked up the phone, and quickly said, “Wait a sec, someone’s at the door.” He cautiously looked out the window, and at first, saw nothing. That is, until he looked down. Grabbing the phone from the table, Tyrone quickly shouted into the phone, “Come quick, Trev, you’ve got to see this…” He slammed the phone back down on the table, and rushed to the door to allow a very dusty Twilight Sparkle to trot in. Twilight leaned in closer, her eyes glued to the aging monitor. “So...” she began slowly, “You’re saying that our universe was created unintentionally from the publishing of a children’s show?!” Tyrone gulped, nodding slowly as he awaited the inevitable tsunami of questions. “I guess that makes sense then… I mean, Equestria’s crime rates have rarely ever surpassed more than a few dozen yearly, which makes sense if it exists in a show made for young audiences…” Trevin crossed his arms. Nodding in approval of Twilight’s logic. “Yep. You’ve got it pretty much on point there.” Suddenly Twilight flung a hoof in the direction of the window. “But if our universes are so closely linked, then how did this happen?!” Tyrone set Twilight’s hoof back down, and began to explain. “Several years ago, the show that linked our universes ended for the last time, setting your universe free from the script writers. With that, everything in your universe became independent, no longer adhering to the ‘for children’ idea, and with that, it began to fall apart. Crime began to rise, morality was traded for greed. Our universe, on the other hand, took a nosedive for the worse. First of all, North Korea launched a nuclear missile in its supposed ‘self defense’ from the United states, causing a sudden surge in weapons production. Soon after, ISIS began to spread even further, aggressively destroying anything in its path. Soon, all this evolved into full-scale world war, kickstarting the third ever of the such. In this world, humanity has forgotten the one thing that’s made it human in the first place…” Twilight sat back down, intrigued by the story. “Well? Go on.” “Friendship.” Twilight raised a brow. “Really?” She replied, “Friendship? I mean, I know that it’s special and all, but even in my universe, normal animals can still express friendship. Y’know, like those times where suddenly a lion or something decides to instead play with a gazelle?” Trevin nodded. “Y’know, Tyrone,” he began, “she’s got a point. What she said actually happened many years back, before those two animals went extinct.” Tyrone’s shoulders slumped. “Yeah, I guess you’re right. But still, most people here just seem to have forgotten how to be normal, civilized beings…” Twilight took a few seconds to allow her mind to process everything. “So basically, once our universe began to crumble, it took yours with it, causing an endless loop of feedback between the two universes. Right?” Trevin corrected her. “Actually, it’s the other way around. The reason why the show was cancelled was because its owner, Hasbro, was taken down by several acts of terror that targeted the ‘non-believer’s propaganda of the west’.” Tyrone continued off what his friend had said moments earlier. “Yes, and after that, the fandom that supported the shows, including us, began to try our best to preserve the show and its ideals, but ultimately failed once the third war broke out.” Twilight flopped onto the floor in defeat. From the floor, she said, “So basically, no matter what the consequences are, we’ll pretty much be doomed anyways?” Tyrone tightened his hands into a fist, unsatisfied with the idea of defeat. “No, Twilight, what you mean to say is that ‘No matter the consequences, we will never fall!’ You got it?!” Twilight sighed. “I guess so. So how are we gonna save our universes?” Trevin pounded his chest, pointing over his heart. “Here.” “With love? I hate to rain on your parade man, but most people have practically forgotten what that word means.” Trevin shrugged in response. “It’s worth a try.” Author's Note Can you guess who wrote the stories mentioned in this chapter???
We Will Never Fall.The trio left the house at sunrise. Tyrone checked the solar collectors one last time to ensure that when they come back, they’d at least have warm water. It wasn’t too odd now to see various odds and ends attached to rooftops and walls these days, since the remaining civilians had to live of what they had. For the past two years, Trevin and Tyrone would rotate houses, allowing resources at one house to recharge while they lived off the other house’s available resources. Trevin had been off at his own house earlier to tend the greenhouse, when he had been called by Tyrone. Originally, upon hearing what his friend had to say, Trevin thought that Tyrone had finally snapped from the pressures of warfare. But… once he saw Twilight for himself, it became much harder for him to doubt his friend again. And yet, doubt he did. “Are you sure that it’s safe to be out in the open right now?” Trevin asked, blinking in the scorching sunlight of the day. Tyrone continued walking, Twilight by his side. “Wait up!” Trevin scampered up besides Tyrone, his thick glasses already coated with dust from the endless stretches of war-torn landscape. Continuing from what he said earlier, Trevin said, “I mean, with how we’re just blatantly presenting ourselves out in the open, we could make easy targets for whatever might be watching.” Tyrone continued on without a word, with only Twilight glancing back for a quick second. “C’mon, Twilight, don’t you understand? Tyrone? We need to stay protected!” Tyrone froze. “Protection is only an illusion,” he muttered under his breath, “if we’re to stay protected, I’d recommend that you stick by my side.” Nodding weakly, Trevin did as he was told. The musty scent of books hit Twilight with a strong sense of familiarity. A library! She thought, trotting happily beside her escorts. Tyrone’s eyes darted about, checking for any signs of being watched. Once he confirmed that the area was secure, he knocked on the side of an old bookshelf. Two short knocks, four seconds pause, followed by sixteen quick raps with his fingertips. The bookshelf shifted, its shelves creaking under the strain of the sudden movement, threatening to lose its contents at any second. Once the shelf had moved aside, Tyrone stepped in, followed by Trevin and Twilight, whose jaws were agape in astonishment. “Tyrone… you… you took us… here?” Trevin asked, eyeing the rows upon rows of empty shelves. Tyrone nodded. “Yes.” he replied, “Before the war began, I regularly came into this area of the library. With how often I volunteered here, I was allowed full access to pretty much any part of the building, so I figured that this storage room would serve us nicely.” Treving rolled his eyes. “Yeah, I know that.” he said, his eyes still darting about in astonishment that the room still existed. “I mean, I’ve known you since third grade. Of course this place would serve us nicely… if we wanted a quiet place to study.” Twilight wiped her hoof across the dusty shelves. “It doesn’t seem like anyone’s been here for ages.” she said, blowing the dust off her hoof. Tyrone chuckled lightly. “You can blame the war for that.” Trevin moved in between the two. “Seriously though,” he began, “what are we here for?” Tyrone smirked. “Remember that knock code I used to get in here?” He asked, raising an eyebrow. “Yeah?” “With the power out, you’d need a person to open that door. Someone who’d be crazy enough to live in a freakin’ library, of all things.” Trevin made a face, followed by Twilight with a scowl of her own. “Kevin?” He asked flatly, thinking back to the times when the burly-haired teen sat in the corner for hours with his face in manga novels. He never really like the boy, considering how the two of them were often confused for one another in class. Tyrone nodded. “In fact, besides coordinating with you, the only other use my phone’s been getting is to set this place up in case something like this happened.” “Something like what?” Trevin asked. Tyrone turned a corner, revealing a fully-fledged greenhouse, complete with automatic watering, temperature control, and solar lighting. Beaming with pride, Tyrone finally answered. “Well, I convinced Kevin here to help me build a bunker in this old room. It’s not very secure, but in terms of supplies, it’ll gonna last us at least a year.” Tyrone said. Kevin nodded as he emerged from the greenhouse, sweat beading on his forehead. “He’s right,” Kevin replied as he leaned on a creaky shelf. “He’ll call me every once in a while and tell me what to set up here while he’s gone. In a few weeks, this place should be ready to take in survivors like you.” He tapped on the plexiglass panels that made the low-hanging roof of the greenhouse. “But for now, the greenhouse isn’t entirely ready yet. I still have to punch a hole through the library’s roof to let some light in.” Tyrone glanced towards Kevin in agreement. “Yeah, it’s pretty hard to grow things when the light’s only coming from side windows.” Trevin raised a brow. “Well, why didn’t you tell me?” He asked, shooting an accusing glare at his rival. Tyrone shrugged. “We figured that if you helped out, it would probably be with the more technical things. Y’know? Like electrical stuff.” Sounds reasonable… Trevin thought as he began exploring the area. Quickly returning after pacing through the cobweb-coated shelves, Trevin sat down on a small stool. “For starters,” he began, “I could probably salvage some solar panels from some of the abandoned houses along the street… and then set up an alternator and a transformer for using everyday appliances… and--” Trevin was cut off by Tyrone, who held up a hand, signaling for him to stop his rambling. “We get it, Trevin. You do electric stuff.” Twilight piped up from behind a large textbook she had picked up earlier in the library. “Or I can just scavenge some things laying around and build some makeshift gadgets.” The group continued their chatter, not noticing the door as it slowly creaked open, allowing for a green-hooded figure to slip inside.
Even the Weak Must Stand,~~~ Entry 678, Scout Day 11, Elise Ciara It’s been so long since I’ve seen people… actual, living people. And here I am, standing in front of a library, of all the places I’d find people. You’d think that I’d have a better chance scouting out camps and stuff, but… I’m just gonna leave it at “No-one’s there anymore”. I braced my body against the crusty door, wincing from the pain that shot up my leg. I busted up my knee earlier while I was scouting along the roads. Finally, I got the heavy door to open wide enough for me to slip in. At first, the library seemed clearly abandoned, but out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that there was an odd shelf that just kinda… stuck out from the wall. Upon closer inspection, I found that it was a passageway, and so naturally, I peeked inside. To my surprise, I saw people. And not only that, but there was a full-sized greenhouse in the back room, and… Twilight Sparkle? Twilight’s ears perked at the sound of footsteps. “Guys,” she whispered, “Someone’s here.” Tyrone whirled around, spotting the figure in the direction Twilight pointed her hoof. Instinctively, he picked a large, heavy book from the ground. A perfect size to throw at one’s head. “Be careful,” Kevin warned, stepping aside for Tyrone to allow his passage. Tyrone stumbled about in the darkened section of the library, tripping over piles of dusty books, and occasionally yelping in pain from stubbing his toe. Finally, he reached the area the figure had slinked off into. “Come out,” he said firmly, “SHOW YOURSELF!” A low groan echoed through the section, followed by a girl who had duct-taped several books together as a splint. She wore a green hoodie, and her hair was heavily matted with all sorts of things. She could barely walk, and was supporting herself against the shelves. Tyrone dropped the book, which landed with a soft ‘thud’ against the carpeted floor. “I-I’m sorry, miss…” he stammered, “I didn’t expect someone like you to be snooping around the library. I mean, typically, the only other people you’d see these days are raiders…” Elise chuckled, and suddenly winced again as she knocked her bad knee against the book. “It’s fine,” she replied as she rubbed her knee, “I’ve had to deal with my own share of raiders for a while now.” Tyrone raised an eyebrow, surprised at the girl’s remark. “Well, then why are you here?” he asked. The girl paused for a moment to think. “My family and I were on a camping trip when the war began, so naturally, we stayed hidden in the forest. That is, until the ‘Scorched Earth’ siege was launched. I lost my entire family to the fires, so I became a lone wolf. Y’know? Surviving on my own, living off whatever I find…” Tyrone patted her on the back. And she didn’t even shed a tear about it, either. He thought as he slid his arms under her. “You don’t have to live like that anymore,” he said as he lifted her up. Tyrone returned to the rest of the group with the bandaged girl, much to the surprise of everyone else. Trevin pointed towards Elise as he glanced towards Twilight. “Looks like we’ve found your intruder, Twi.” Twilight’s initial worry of an attack soon gave way, her face relaxing as she let out her tension. “Well, that’s good.” She said, glancing towards Elise. Kevin stared at Elise for several seconds, before finally saying, “You can’t stay.” “W-what?!” Screamed Elise, regretting her outburst immediately after with a wincing scowl. “I’ve been walking. With a bad leg.” She heaved her wounded leg onto the table to prove her point. “And on top of that, I haven’t seen anything even remotely similar to civilization for months.” Kevin backed up in surprise. “Woah, lady. I didn’t mean that you couldn’t stay just because you’re here, I meant to say that the greenhouse won’t be able to support so many people.” He stepped back towards Elise. “What I mean is, you’ll have to work your stay. We can’t afford to just mindlessly donate to whoever the hell we want, okay?” Elise shrugged. “I’m fine with that.” She said casually, eyeing Kevin intensely. She dropped her focus on Kevin, and turned to Twilight. “One more thing, why is a fuckin’ pony here?!” Twilight chuckled nervously. “It’s kind of a long story, actually…” she replied, setting her book down. “You see, Equestria’s in just a bad of a state as this world, possibly even worse as far as I know. So I left my friends, what’s left of my family, and Equestria as a whole to find what I can only say would be the last chance for society.” Kevin leaned in towards Trevin. “Woah, that’s deep.” he whispered, earning a quick smack to the face. “Shut up, Kevin.” Kevin leaned back. “But still... deep.” Another smack. Tyrone rolled his eyes at the encounter. “Listen. All we need are some helpers. Alright? Some nice people who are willing to do some work, fix this place up some more. We’re not gonna be saving the world on an empty stomach, y’know?” Kevin shut up, and nodded vigorously. “Now then. Elise here’s injured too, so we’ll need to treat her first. She wouldn’t be very helpful just sitting there.” Trevin silently rushed towards the office for a first aid kit, while Elise began mapping out the area on a notebook.
For The Chain is Only as Strong as its Weakest Link.“Ow!” “Calm down, Elise. It’s just some alcohol wipes.” Elise silently glared at Trevin as she rubbed her stinging knee. “Hey, like I said, it’s gonna sting, but it’s for the better.” She winced again as Trevin poured a cold water bottle over the wound to rinse off any remaining dirt. He then dug through the first-aid box, and pulled out a roll of gauze. A few brief minutes later, Elise was back up again with a freshly bandaged leg, along with a proper splint made from broken shelf pieces. Quickly glancing about before sitting down, she pulled out her journal once more, and began writing. Entry 679, Scout Day 11, Elise Ciara So, apparently, this library’s been converted into a bunker of sorts. It’s pretty, but it definitely wouldn’t hold up against a raid. I’ve already drawn out some things on the back of the page that should help in terms of security. My knee’s also stinging a lot less now, thanks to Trev and whatever the hell that was that he smothered my knee with… At least it doesn’t look so gross anymore. He also went ahead and wrapped it up in some gauze, but I can still see some blood seeping through. I’m also pretty hungry. If I remember correctly, the buff guy said that the greenhouse wasn’t complete yet. I can see what he means, since the greenhouse’s still covered by the library’s ceiling. I’ll probably go back out later to scavenge some dandelions from the remaining green patches in the area. They’ll make a nice salad or something. Elise’s stomach did the writing for the last part. How many days had it been since she last ate? Two? Three? Ever since the last of the rations back at camp were cleared, she had been surviving off whatever she could scavenge from her surroundings. Small berries, flowers, she even ate grass during the hardest times. “Lemme guess. Hungry?” Elise glanced upwards, her gaze meeting Trevin’s. “Yeah, I guess so. Should we go out and scavenge or something?” Trevin shook his head. “No,” he replied, “I’ve got a personal greenhouse. Here, take this.” He pulled a small paper-wrapped package from his backpack, and tossed it down to Elise. She slowly unwrapped it, revealing a plastic baggie filled with dried fruit. Elise looked back up to Trevin, a nervous smile spreading across her face. “You-you’re giving me this? I… I thought that I had to work for my rations…” Trevin smiled gently. “It’s just a sort of ‘welcome to the club’ gift.” he replied, “I gave Twilight there a few apples earlier while Tyrone was finding you.” Elise’s eyebrows furrowed in worry. “But--” “But food’s precious?” Trevin continued, finishing Elise’s sentence. “Yeah.” Trevin shrugged. “So what? I’ve got a decent surplus back at my place anyways. Just try not to eat it all too quickly.” “Why?” she asked. Tyrone replied, “Even though I have a surplus, it’s not that much of a surplus. Don’t forget, we’re still rationing.” Elise nodded, and slipped a dried pear slice from the bag into her mouth. “Is it okay?” Trevin asked, watching Elise as she chewed the fruit. She shrugged. “Eh, I’ve tasted better, but it sure beats dandelion salad.” Trevin’s eyes widened. He barfed a little in his mouth, too. Noticing his face turning green, Elise giggled. “It’s actually not all that bad. You should try it sometime.” Trevin held up a finger, and began running towards the restrooms. Meanwhile, Elise picked herself back up from the floor, and began making her way back towards the rest of the group, who were busy discussing what to grow in the greenhouse. When she arrived, Twilight turned to face her. “I overheard you back there talking to Trevin.” Elise began to blush. “Look, I can explai--” “I’ve had dandelion salad before, too! And I know what you mean. Bitter, but at the same time, nice and crunchy, too!” The two glanced over towards Tyrone and Kevin, who had frozen in their places. Tyrone broke the silence. “Wait, wait… so you’re saying that you’ve both eaten dandelions… in a salad.” Elise shrugged. “It’s better than chewing sticks, okay?” Twilight continued from where Elise ended. “And besides, it’s tangy, too! You should try it sometime!” Kevin cocked his head. “Um… I’m just gonna…” He stood up, and began backing away from the girl and the pony. “...leave you two alone for now…” He turned, and made a mad dash to the opposite side of the library, where he proceeded to immediately stick his face into the nearest cookbook he could find. Author's Note Here's the sixth chapter. After the eleventh chapter, it'll all come to an end... and quite literally a new beginning.
We Must Stand as OneWhile our intrepid humans, backed by Twilight are busy trying to save the world, the mane 5 plus spike are fighting for their lives back in Equestria. Somehow, intruders (Midnight Talons) have breached through part of the wall and are pouring through the breach and all ponies must fight to survive, I think maybe we can afford to kill off a couple of background characters, (not gory or anything) (need to figure how the breach occured.) As the chapter concludes, things fade away and one of the mane 5’s last thought is of Twilight abandoning them. (Like different time zones, an hour in Earth is like a day in Equestria, so Twilight’s been gone for a few days and the others have begun losing hope.) Partially. Sombra's taken a large portion of it. Sombra's holding Shining Armor for ransom. Sombra, who's being backed by a cult. Cadence is in a separate base in the crystal empire, but Celestia and Luna are missing. Applebloom made it, Derpy, and Lyra. Bon Bon, AKA Secret Agent Sweetie Drops, is MIA. ~~~ “Something’s coming.” Spike lowered his telescope, and turned to the rest of the group. “Applejack, you guard the main entrance. If anything comes through, I want you to buck them as hard as you can. Even if it means killing them.” The Earth Pony nodded solemnly, and headed her way towards the assigned post. “Fluttershy, how’s that army coming?” Fluttershy saluted timidly, her eyes darting between her animal friends. They’ve never had any experience in fighting, except for Angel, really. She thought. “Um… they’re fine… I guess…” “Great,” nodded Spike, “Rarity?” Pinkie pointed a hoof towards the back entrance. “She already guarding the back. All her stuff’s there, remember?” Spike raised an eyebrow, but didn’t question anything. “Uh… Pinkie, you just guard whatever. You’re pretty much everywhere at once, anyways.” Pinkie bounced off into the ceiling, defying all logic and laws of physics, as usual. What did I just see? Spike thought as he shook his head. “Dash, you guard the surface. Alert me if anything shows up.” Rainbow Dash quickly saluted, and fled out the door. Spike held the telescope back to his eye, closely following Rainbow Dash as she began scouting outside. As he looked outside, he saw an unfortunately familiar flag, adorned with a silver talon in front of a white moon. “Midnight Talons…” He thought, “What are they doing here? They mostly stay where the old Griffon Empire was.” He thought back to the first time he had heard of them. Back then, they had just captured the Capital of the Griffon empire, and had declared it to be Midnight Talon territory. But now… it seemed as if they were intent on owning all of Equestria. He gazed out the window again, watching Dash hover about the perimeter, steely eyes scanning the skies. Rarity hurriedly paced back and forth by the back entrance. Though she hardly cared anymore about her fashion--there was rarely anybody left to show off to--she still felt a bit more normal to be around her old items. She shrieked in surprise as a large, steel-tipped spear bashed its way through the hard crystal walls, easily knocking a hole the size of her hoof. “Burn the place down,” she heard through the walls, “storm the place! LEAVE NO SURVIVORS.” She chuckled to herself, knowing that a large majority of crystals, including the type the Castle was composed of, were typically flame-resistant. If it were anything besides, then the castle would likely have been destroyed years ago by one of Twilight’s ‘experiments’. She heard one of the Talons give a frustrated groan, continuing to punch through the wall with a spear. As strong as they are, they can be quite dull at times. She thought, charging her horn. A quick flame spell later, and the Midnight Talons were dispersed. Typical… she thought, grinning proudly to herself, birds afraid of the fire. Then she heard a much louder voice outside. One that barked, “RELEASE THE DIAMOND DOGS!” Oh dear. She took a peek out the door, and saw some diamond dog mercenaries in a row outside the door beginning to charge. She quickly closed the door, and felt a heavy thud a few seconds later. A few pained groans came from the other side, and that loud voice once again yelled, “CHARGE, I SAY! DO YOU WANT YOUR PAY OR NOT?!” “Y-yes, sir!” A much weaker voice stammered, the spear withdrawing from the wall. From the hole in the wall, Rarity shot a blinding light spell, stunning the Talons for a few precious moments. Immediately after, she followed through with several short-term illusions to throw said Talons off. Outside, she could hear confused mutters, and the clashing of friendly fire as Talons turned on each other, thanks to the illusion spell that she had wrapped about the nearest to her. Thanks, Trixie, she thought as she fired another volley of illusions. This time, they were all focused on the commander of their troop. Yet another blinding flash later, and all enemy troops had found themselves charging their own commander. Huh. they really are featherbrains... Spike patted Rarity on the back, startling the mare. “Good work, but you’ll be needed up front now.” he said through a worried smile. Rainbow Dash returned, panting heavily. “The… there’s more backup troops flanking our east side!” She yelled. Spike nodded, and turned to Applejack and Fluttershy, the latter shrinking back in fear. He pointed a claw towards the area Dash had mentioned. “We all must do our parts. It’s your turn now.” Applejack tightened her helmet, and galloped out the door without a word, her steel and applewood rifle ready to fire. The pegasus followed after, flanked on each side by her furry army. Spike watched sadly as his former friends, now his troops, left the room, opening the possibility of never coming back.
A Retrospective of the WorldTyrone shivered as he drew his raggedy blanket about his skinny frame, trying to ignore the gnawing hunger that he felt. The electricity had come on for the first time in weeks, and he was taking advantage of the rare occasion, watching the news for updates on the war. The news was on. (In fact, it was the only program available, for all others were now forbidden by the government.) Nowadays, it rarely, if ever, held good news. War in one country, famine and sickness in another. It seemed like the society of Earth was slowly declining towards its unfortunate demise, and yet very few seemed to take notice, though if they did, they didn’t seem to care, too busy caught in the petty, useless battles between mankind. Whatever happened to peace and tolerance? He sadly wondered to himself, as he watched the depressing imagery. There was a time when everyone was friends... and harmony reigned above all. ...And now, in this world of eight billion people, there was no friendship. No love, no harmony. Nothing, nothing at all. Only war. War and sickness. In fact, the last time people had united in friendship against hate and prejudice had been when the last generation of that supposed child’s show aired. What was it called? Oh yes; My Little Pony, Friendship is Magic. In its heyday, the show had 7 seasons, four movies and tons of fan-made stories, art and music. People all around the world, from young girls to elderly men had bonded together, forming a beautiful fandom based upon their love for this seemingly unforgettable show. Despite originally being aimed at children, the show rapidly gained ground, because of its message for friendship, love and tolerance, and the six Elements of Harmony; Laughter, Kindness, Loyalty, Honesty, Generosity. And Magic, the element to unite all elements in friendship. The show, with its message of togetherness had risen during a time where the global phenomenon known as the internet had begun its own corruption and sealing Earth’s doom. At first, it was just a small handful of threats and trolls, which then escalated to terrorism, and in turn became a wave of worldwide hate crimes. The show, and its fandom, had suddenly found themselves as one of the major supporting beams of society; the keepers of whatever shreds of humanity there was left on the planet, the basic humanity, men had long since forgotten. Hasbro had yet to reveal the next generation due to unforeseen consequences, and with this, the fandom began to churn out a near-endless line of works, and at one point even an unofficial eighth season. But all to no avail. The fandom began to lose its charm not too long after, and became stagnant. First, the superficial bronies and pegasisters, the ones who said they liked the show, but weren’t as deeply committed to the ideals and beliefs as the rest. They were the first to fall, followed by the regular bronies and Pegasisters, who reluctantly gave up on the show, their various fan site accounts dead and buried, their art forgotten and their music unheard. As one of the biggest influences over society, the fandom had been mainly balancing out evil, and occasionally changing the minds of a large group here and there. Now with the fandom fallen, there was now nothing to combat the hate and prejudice of the common man, who have since turned on each other, creating wars and sickness through horrifying methods. Many peacekeeping organizations were destroyed in the first few days of the Third World War. Even large organizations such as Anonymous fell to the destruction of society, by the means of internal conflict. Even Hasbro, the original publisher of the series-- thus the founder of the fandom-- couldn’t stand to the chaos. Just a couple of years afterwards, its headquarters were utterly devastated by a series of various attacks. However, there still exists a fragment, however small compared to the much larger, and once-proud Brony fandom. The die-hards, who despite everything, had never given up on the show, and continued to defiantly publish their stories and art, defying the inevitable doom that glared in their faces. The once great gem of My Little Pony; Equestria now lies in ruins, lost and forgotten by all but those loyal to the end, who continue to this day in attempt to prop up the sad facade of the show. The loss of the fandom has greatly weakened Equestria, with only the true fans keeping the structure sound. They have to be careful, lest any action they make may forever change the land itself. Eventually, the news became too upsetting, so Tyrone turned it off, plunging the damp room into stygian darkness. He glanced at his computer, fighting off the waves of memories it held for him. In his time, he had been one of the loudest voices and biggest supporters for the fandom, but like many, he had eventually lost hope and abandoned the fandom to die its slow and miserable death. As he stood before it, unbidden images sprang to his mind. The ponies, brightly coloured and as happy as ever, the beautiful capitol, Canterlot; a gem among gems, the Crystal Palace, stunning in its radiant glow. He had experienced many happy occasions, as well as sad with the fandom he had once called his true family. He missed the fandom, missed the show, missed the Old Earth. It had been too long now. What was it? Two? Three years ago? His gaze met the dusty calendar hanging on the wall. Five years. Five too many… he thought, glancing at the war-torn landscape through his cracked window. He looked back at his prized works, all neatly arranged across multiple folders on his desk. No, He realized, hope springing to his heart. It doesn’t have to end here. If no-one will do anything to save this world, I will. He glanced back towards his computer. He would need help... He couldn’t do this on his own. Hopefully, the network will cooperate… he thought as he picked up an old cellphone. A few quick dial tones later, Tyrone found himself connected to an old friend. “Hey, I think I know how to save the world.”
